Democracy Is Meaningless

All Men are Liars:
Is Democracy Meaningless?
1
by Gerry Mackie
St. John's College
University of Oxford
Oxford OX1 3JP
United Kingdom
gerry.mackie@sjc.ox.ac.uk
April 18, 1997
Forthcoming in Jon Elster, ed.,
Deliberative Democracy
2
I. Introdu
ction.
One current of thought within the rational choice
approach to the study of politics asserts that democratic voting and democratic discussion are each, generally, inaccurate and meaningless. 2
I
will call an emphasis on these descriptive assertions
against democracy "theRochester current," because its exemplar, the late William Riker, was long a professor of political science at the University of Rochester, and his work on social choice and democracy influenced many of his students and colleagues th

ere.
3The Rochester current is heir to a tradition of skepticism against the possibility of democratic politics, most respectably expressed earlier in this century by the economists Pareto and Schumpeter.

In America the skeptical view of democracy is
often accompanied by
a family of arguments to the effect that "most public sector programs . . . are inappropriate, or are carried on at an inappropriate level, or are executed in an inappropriate manner."
4
The normative recommendation that is supposed
tofollow from these descriptive assertions is that we are best protected from the absurdities of democracy by liberal institutions that, to the maximum extent feasible, shunt decisions from the incoherent democratic forum to the coherent economic market, an

d that fragment political power so thatambitious elites circulate and contest in perpetual futility; in other words, that the U.S. Constitution, especially as it was interpreted before the New Deal to prevent political interference in the economy, is one of the best of all

possible political arrangements.
5
The descriptive assertions against
democracy and that normative recommendation are not necessarily linked, however. There are those...

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

...rule, some make an attempt to set up a government in which the people ruled themselves. This form of government is called a democracy, or “rule of the people.” History has also revealed through the Greeks and the French Revolution, that a democracy that gives complete power to the people, “absolute democracy”, is nothing more than a short prelude to tyranny.
Democracy is a unique type of government, and the purpose of this essay is to illustrate the strengths and weaknesses that a democratic government provides. I will detail that many components of this type of society are both strengths and weakness as each component has beneficial aspects as well as unavoidable pitfalls.
A democracy is a government by the people, in which the power is vested in the people themselves. The people then elect representatives who conduct their power in a free electoral system. The Declaration of Independence, which says that all men are created equal, was written on the premise of a democracy.
According to John Locke, who wrote The Social Contract, before acknowledging that an individual is part of a specific government format, such as a democracy, one must understand that being an individual in society means you personally agree to partake in a social contract, which is basically an outline for the rules, standards, and conduct of that society. But what makes this a democracy...

...What is Democracy?
1.government by the people; a form of government in which thesupreme power is vested in the people and exercised directly bythem or by their elected agents under a free electoral system.
2.a state having such a form of government.
3.a state of society characterized by formal equality of rights andprivileges.
4.political or social equality; democratic spirit.
5.the common people of a community as distinguished from anyprivileged class; the common people with respect to theirpolitical power.
Democracy consists of four basic elements:
I want to begin with an overview of what democracy is. We can think of democracy as a system of government with four key elements:
1. A political system for choosing and replacing the government through free and fair elections.
2. The active participation of the people, as citizens, in politics and civic life.
3. Protection of the human rights of all citizens.
4. A rule of law, in which the laws and procedures apply equally to all citizens.
I want to talk about each of these four elements of what democracy is. Then I will talk about the obligations and requirements of citizens in a democracy.
Then I will conclude by talking about the obligations that we, the international community, have to the people of Iraq as you seek to build the first true democracy in the Arab world.
...

...Democracy Essay 1
Democracy is a means for the people to choose their leaders and to hold their leaders accountable for their policies and their conduct in office. The key role of citizens in a democracy is to participate in public life. Democracy is also a system of rule by laws, not by individuals. Democracy is not a government. It is a way of thinking and a responsibility. In a democracy there is no corruption in power because it is a transparent system; the governing doctrine states that citizens have the right to access the documents and proceedings of the government, which allows for effective public oversight. Like a sculptor, democracy grows with its work and appreciates its art
Citizens have an obligation to become informed about public issues, to watch carefully how their political leaders and representatives use their powers, and to express their own opinions and interest. Voting in election is another important civic duty of all citizens. But to vote wisely, each citizen should listen to the views of the different parties and candidates, and then, make his or her own decision on whom to support. It is important that women participate fully both in politics and in civil society. In a democracy, every citizen has certain...

...Democracy: The Best of the Worst
Democracy is without a doubt a fairly successful system of governance. Although dozens of systems have been tried over the ages, the world has been continuously edging towards increasingly democratic models, at least in baby steps when not in great leaps and bounds. And yet Winston Churchill - both the product and professional beneficiary of a modestly democratic system - suggested that he considered it to be paradoxically "the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried." Of course, this is not a genuine assault on the democratic institution, but rather a humble admission that while it is the superior option, it still has profound shortcomings. While perhaps there exists potential for a truly flawless system that we have yet to try, the democratic model remains the best choice for peaceful and effective government against the other options.
The best government is the one that best serves the interest of its citizenry. Whether this means democratic, conservative, totalitarian, religious, communist, libertarian or any other description will vary from one population to next. And that is perhaps the first flaw in boasting about the greatness of democracy: it proclaims one model to be the ideal in a world where one size does not fit all. However, a democratic system also has an inherent flexibility that allows it to be adapted to suit the changing needs of the electorate. If...

...citizens, able to claim their rights and fulfil their duties. Today there are big
lacks in the educational systems when it comes to fostering active citizenship among the
school student community.
OBESSU is aware of the importance of reverting this existing trend of lack of school students’
participation and how crucial it is to include school students and young people in the
governance of society, by providing them with the right tools to do so.
25
Right to participate at school
30
In most cases, school itself is still an undemocratic institution where school students are
denied the right to fully influence their daily school life. In school, democracy remains mostly
taught as a theoretical concept and it is not practiced in reality. Democracy cannot, however,
only be grasped by means of theory. Democracy is extremely important when it comes to
school student participation in school politics, e.g. school student councils. Only by being part
of democratic processes, one can fully learn how those actually work. An educational
institution that has been shaped with the involvement of the school students themselves will
look different from one that has not, and it will actually answer the real demands of school
students and cater for their needs when it comes to education.
35
The first impact with society school students have is in the classroom. School students will
behave as a citizen if they are...

...DemocracyDemocracy has become a dominant form of the government, that using in many countries. Democracy is a government form, which is the citizen should have a decision to vote their leader directly for their own country or elect the leader for the other problems. Democracy can develop it, if the majority and the minority party or the association willing works together. Which is everybody can talk and have an opinion, than will put the all idea together and take a better decision for the problem. With democracy form, the one elected leader will work as maximum as possible for the citizens. Than the citizens can see and make a decision about what the elected leader have done to the country and also they have elected the right or wrong leader.
Democracy is based on the concept, that everybody in the world is the same, no matter what they are a president or a king. In democracy also have no different between how people look like. For example: White and black, lower class and middle class. Furthermore, not everybody have an equal physically or mentally. The important thing, democracy is all human being have equality.
In democracy have an important concept. The first concept is all of the citizens that living in one country, that should be equal, which have an idea and an opinion than issues to the public. The important thing, while elect the...

...Today, most of the countries in the world are democracies. Knowing what is a democracy is really important, especially for those who live in a democracy. It allows you to understand what is the rule that the government plays in the society and know what are your rights and duties under a democratic administration. This essay will seek to define Democracy, the meaning of the word, the system and the history, and describe two of the most famous democracies: Direct democracy and Representative democracy.
Democracy is a form of government where people have power to participate in the government. The word “democracy” comes from Greek and means dēmos 'the people' + -kratia 'power, rule'. According to Oxford dictionary, democracy is a “a system of government by the whole population or all the eligible members of a state, typically through elected representatives: a system of parliamentary democracy.” Democracy principles are: All citizens are equal—they have equal rights and duties. The rules are applied equally and fairly to all and not just a few. The majority rules but the rights of the minority and absent members are protected. Citizens have the right to know what is going on within the government. Politicians and leaders are elected through the process of election. In this process, any individual or group...

...Democracy means power in the hand of people. Democracy is a form of government where sovereignty is in the hand of the people, the general public. The basic idea is of equality, freedom and welfare for all. It does not take into consideration the cast or the wealth of some person; every individual is treated fairly and is given equal rights.
Democracy implies political liberty. Political liberty consists of the right to vote, the right to sand as a candidate for election, the right to hold public offices, freedom of speech, of association, of worship and of opinion. All these secure the individual, the most fundamental right of political participation. By giving everyone a share in the government, democracy prompts patriotism.
The greatest merit of democracy is that it elevates the character of the citizens. It demands a high standard of morality and honesty on their part. It provides for the fullest possible development of all its citizens and gives each citizen, a sense of responsibility. In a democratic society, reason governs the conduct of men and each man feels responsible for his actions. Here every person contributes some thought or feeling to the common life. Thus, democracy is not only a form of government, but also a way of life.
Unfortunately for our country Pakistan, democracy has not lived for even half of the 65 years. Every now and then, a dictator comes...